Lately my children have started to bicker and fight and cry and generally not get along. At least for little pockets during otherwise long and lovely patches of play.
Yesterday morning, I laid down the following rule: if you taunt your sibling by saying na na na na na (you have to sing it, you know what I mean, right?) then you sit on the step. That's right, the step.
Tommy taught it to Lulu and now she is ridiculous about it. The moment she gets something that either (1) belongs to Tommy or (2) is something that she knows he will like and want, she lets loose a na-na-na-na-na so that he will (1) know she has it and (2) try to get it. And I'm like, DUDE, right now you have something cool. Just be quiet and you might get to keep it.
But either she's not as smart as I am, or retaining possession of the item is a lower priority than antagonizing her brother.
Her brother who is SO incredibly nice to her, almost always. When she has a fit, he offers her toys, hugs, any comfort he can think of. He squats down to her level and turns on his high voice: "What's the matter Lu? It's okay, don't worry. Let's go upstairs and play."
This morning I YELLED at Lulu because she was on her second fit in the same number of minutes and this one was about where Tommy had put down a ball that Lulu had never seen before in her life and had no reason to care about at all, and Tommy got super sweet to her: "you want me to put it back, Lu? Okay, okay, don't worry, it's okay." And then I had to apologize for being a horrible mother and for yelling and things were fine for the next ten or so minutes.
Later in the morning, Tommy shouted down the stairs that Lulu said na-na-na-na-na and I asked if I should come put her on the step. And he shouted down that no, I should not, as she said sorry. He's so sweet to her that I don't actually believe she did apologise but then, I suppose that's what big brothers are for, so I left them alone.
Yesterday morning, I laid down the following rule: if you taunt your sibling by saying na na na na na (you have to sing it, you know what I mean, right?) then you sit on the step. That's right, the step.
Tommy taught it to Lulu and now she is ridiculous about it. The moment she gets something that either (1) belongs to Tommy or (2) is something that she knows he will like and want, she lets loose a na-na-na-na-na so that he will (1) know she has it and (2) try to get it. And I'm like, DUDE, right now you have something cool. Just be quiet and you might get to keep it.
But either she's not as smart as I am, or retaining possession of the item is a lower priority than antagonizing her brother.
Her brother who is SO incredibly nice to her, almost always. When she has a fit, he offers her toys, hugs, any comfort he can think of. He squats down to her level and turns on his high voice: "What's the matter Lu? It's okay, don't worry. Let's go upstairs and play."
This morning I YELLED at Lulu because she was on her second fit in the same number of minutes and this one was about where Tommy had put down a ball that Lulu had never seen before in her life and had no reason to care about at all, and Tommy got super sweet to her: "you want me to put it back, Lu? Okay, okay, don't worry, it's okay." And then I had to apologize for being a horrible mother and for yelling and things were fine for the next ten or so minutes.
Later in the morning, Tommy shouted down the stairs that Lulu said na-na-na-na-na and I asked if I should come put her on the step. And he shouted down that no, I should not, as she said sorry. He's so sweet to her that I don't actually believe she did apologise but then, I suppose that's what big brothers are for, so I left them alone.
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